How to “Make” Yourself Stick to Your New Year’s Resolutions

The New Year is here and many of us are indulging in retrospection, dreaming big dreams, reevaluating some of our life choices, and making actionable plans in reaction to the past year.

Making New Year’s resolutions is the perfect method to start making the changes that you said you would make. Whether you said it would happen next week, next month, or perhaps when the holidays are “out of the way”, now is the time to do it. Make your New Year’s resolutions now and then make yourself stick to them. Here’s how.

Top 8 Tips for 2018

Stop procrastinating: The desire to relax and do something fun instead of working hard often leads to procrastination. And, if you get caught in this cycle, it’s hard to break. There are many useful tips out there to help you stop procrastinating, but there is also the effective alternative of finding a project that requires hard work but is also fun. That happens a lot at the OBP!

Improve your concentration and mental skills: It sounds a bit like a Jedi mind trick, but improving your concentration and mental skills really can help you stick to your New Year’s resolutions. We recommend using anything that helps – from apps to ancient meditation techniques to attending an event at the OBP to boost concentration and hone your mental skills. Of course, if you do need the help of the Force, we offer a Build Your Own Light Saber class.

Titi de Baccarat, OBP Member

Meet new people: Sometimes it’s easier to just stay home or stick to the group of people you know. However, if you connect with and meet new people, they can help you stick to your New Year’s resolutions. We also have a lot of interesting people you can meet at the OBP who might have the same resolutions you do! Check out our blog to learn about some of our members.

Become more confident and take some chances: This is a hard one for a lot of people, but chances are if you take chances you’ll become more confident. The more confident you are, the more likely you are to keep to your New Year’s resolutions. Don’t hesitate to read up on ways to boost your confidence. The first tip? Sign up for an evening class…we know a few good ones right here at the OBP!

Reduce stress: It just makes sense that stress will make it harder to stick to your New Year’s resolutions. Aside from being bad for your goals, it’s also bad for your health and relationships. There are lots of ways to reduce and manage stress. Helpguide.org had some excellent stress management tips which include making time for fun and relaxation. Fortunately, we have just the thing for you at the OBP. For example, you could come learn all about lasers and the value of speculation.

Pick up useful skills: Sitting around all day won’t get you anywhere, but sometimes neither will doing some of the things you enjoy. Consider learning a truly practical skill that will come in handy down the road. Not only will this be helpful, it might reduce your stress and will certainly help you feel more confident. Aside from classes at the OBP like learning how to assemble an engine, there are also internship opportunities. Come on down and pick up some useful skills and stick to those New Year’s resolutions!

Basket Weaving by Eric Stark

Turn your hobby into a career: This isn’t always possible, but there are possibilities. Check out how a few of our members, like Eric Stark, Mark Ferguson, and Kris Kleva, did exactly that and see if they can offer some helpful tips.

Start being more creative: There is a reason we’ve added the A(rt) to STEAM. Creativity is vital to thwarting mental fatigue and vital to thinking outside the box. Spark your creativity and you’ll be more likely to stick to your New Year’s resolutions because your brain will be less tired!

Happy 2018

Well, there you have it – a few pieces of advice to help you stick to your New Year’s resolutions. We wish you all a very Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you at the OBP in 2018!